Hank Williams, Jr. to Pay Tribute to Dad With Brad Paisley Duet at CMT Music Awards

With the bevy of country stars set to perform during tomorrow’s (June 6) 2012 CMT Music Awards live telecast, show producers seem rather excited about the performance from one of country music’s living legends, Hank Williams, Jr. The member of the country music’s royal family will take the stage to pay tribute to his father, Hank Williams, who was one of the most iconic artists in county music history.

Speaking on the performance slot, producer John Hamlin says, “Hank has a new record coming out in July, and his manager brought us a song from it. It might not even be a single, and that’s something that I am very proud of.” (quote via Billboard).

“The performances don’t always have to be of a current single. It could be a song that comes to us that we fall in love with,” explains Hamlin. “In this case, it’s an ode to his father that features another country music superstar. It also is going to take place outside the arena, which is something we don’t often to do. It’s sure to be a highlight of the show.”

With one glance at the released track listing of Williams’ upcoming ‘Old School, New Rules’ album, out July 10, we were able to guess that the rowdy singer will share the stage with either Brad Paisley or fellow legend Merle Haggard, as both superstars make an appearance on Williams’ new project. Confirmation came Tuesday that it is in fact Paisley that Williams, Jr. will sing with, dueting on a song called ‘I’m Gonna Get Drunk and Play Hank Williams.’

“I’m excited about this new album,” Williams says of the project (quote via Webster & Associates PR). “I’m definitely ‘Old School,’ and I am making music with ‘New Rules.’ People know I’m gonna say exactly what I think and this album is exactly that.”